The Green Bay Packers set an NFL record that still stands as they dominated the Cleveland Browns 55-7 at Milwaukee County Stadium. Vince Lombardi’s team scored 35 points in the first quarter thanks to two kicks that were turned for touchdowns by rookie Travis Williams. Running back Donny Anderson also had a big game, running for three touchdowns and catching a fourth. Today we look back at Travis Williams as he led the Packers to a record setting win over the Browns.

Travis Williams Leads the Packers to a Record Setting Win: The Buildup

The Packers entered this game with a 5-2-1 record as they sought to win their third straight championship. The team had struggled through some injuries and early season inconsistency but was now back on track. The Packers had just lost a tough game to the Baltimore Colts the previous week 13-10 and were looking to get back on track.

Meanwhile, the Browns came into this game with a 5-3 mark. Blanton Collier’s club had just beaten the Steelers 34-14 in Pittsburgh the previous week and needed another win to stay in the playoff hunt. Their offense was led by quarterback Frank Ryan and running back Leroy Kelly.

The Packers were dealing with serious injuries at running back. Elijah Pitts tore his Achilles tendon the previous week and was lost for the season. Fullback Jim Gabowski injured his knee and was also out for this game. Lombardi signed former Giants running back Chuck Mercein before this game. He would be making his Packers debut and would later play a key role in the final drive of “The Ice Bowl” later that season.

A Lightning Fast Start

The Packers won the toss and elected to receive. They couldn’t have had a better start. Williams took the opening kickoff and raced 87 yards for a touchdown. The game was just 13 seconds old, and the Packers led 7-0.

Defensive back Bob Jeter set up the next Packers score when he intercepted Ryan to give Green Bay back the ball. Bart Starr wasted little time and found tight end Marv Fleming for a 14-yard touchdown pass that made the score 14-0 Green Bay.

The Packers defense kept creating turnovers and the offense kept cashing in. Ray Nitschke recovered a fumble at the Cleveland 37. That set up a two-yard touchdown run by Anderson who was making his first career NFL start.

Travis Williams Leads the Packers to a Record Setting Win: More Big Plays

The Packers just kept pouring it on. Jim Flanigan recovered another Browns fumble and returned it to the Cleveland 27.  A few plays later, Starr connected with Anderson on a 27-yard scoring throw up the middle to make it 28-0.

The Browns answered and scored on a 59-yard dash by Ernie Green late in the first quarter. But any hope Cleveland had of getting back into the game ended on the ensuing kickoff. Williams ran that one back 85 yards for another touchdown. The two kick returns for a score remains an NFL record although it has been tied since.

“They were typical wedge returns, the kind most teams use, but short kicks enabled him to meet the wedge a lot quicker,” Lombardi said after the game. “It’s also a question of speed. He hits the hole so darn quick.”

Collier quickly learned to respect Williams. “We used two safety men on each kick, and we talked constantly about him, the way he could change games around. That’s what he did in St. Louis and that’s what he did today.”

“I’ve never seen things go your way so much so early in the game,” Starr added. “Those kickoff returns were a thing of beauty.”

At the end of the first quarter, the Packers led 35-7. Fifty-eight years later, the 35 points remain the all-time record for any NFL team in the first quarter of a game.

The Packers Pull Away

The Packers weren’t even close to finished. In the second quarter, they added two more points, first on a nine-yard touchdown run by Anderson and then on a 24-yard field goal by Don Chandler.

In the second half, the Packers scored 10 more points with Chandler kicking a field goal from 30 yards out and Anderson running for another score on a three-yard run. The final score was Green Bay 55, Cleveland 7.

“I’m not proud of beating them that bad,” said Lombardi who never liked to run up the score. “I’d rather take five of those points and tack them onto our Baltimore score.” [the 13-10 loss to the Colts]

After the game, Lombardi also had praise for his quarterback. “The story of the game was Starr. He’s starting to come around and play some football.”

Travis Williams Leads the Packers to a Record Setting Win: The Roadrunner

This was a big game for Williams. The rookie had struggled to hold on to the football in training camp. Lombardi had him carry a football with him everywhere to help teach him to hold on to it. Williams got the message.

“All Travis needed was just a little bit of space,” recalled Hall of Fame cornerback Herb Adderley. “After two or three steps he was in full flight, and he had psychic peripheral vision. He would see cracks, and by the time guys coming straight down-field could turn and chase, it was already too late.”

Center Ken Bowman recalled Williams’ impact. “For a brief flash, he was one of the best. He was without peer during that time with his speed and size. He was without peer during that time with his speed and size. It’s kind of surprising what happened to him. He was a fun-loving guy. He used to carry this book around and quote from it all the time. He had a good sense of humor.”

Unfortunately, Williams’ life after football got off track. He had issues with depression and alcoholism and was homeless for a time. He died in 1991 at the age of 45.

The Aftermath

The Packers defense caused seven turnovers in the game and sacked Ryan three times. He completed just 7-of-21 passes for 97 yards and four interceptions. That gave him a quarterback rating of 9.5.

Meanwhile, Starr completed 14-of-21 passes for 249 yards and two touchdowns. Anderson ran for three scores and caught another while fullback Ben Wilson gained exactly 100 yards on 16 carries. Anderson added 103 receiving yards on five catches to his 56 rushing yards. Carroll Dale caught five passes for 94 yards.

“Give this team credit,” Lombardi told reporters. “One of these days this will be a great ball club. Maybe next year, maybe this year, maybe next week.”

They were great eventually. The Packers finished 9-4-1 on the season, won their division and went on to win their third straight championship, something no team has done since.

And no team has scored 35 points in the first quarter of a game since this game either. Almost six decades later, it remains an NFL record.

 

 

 

 

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